Architecture and landscape at DesignMarch

DesignMarch is just around the corner but the festival will take place all over the capital region from 4th to 8th May. The program this year is versatile and exciting and boasts over 100 exhibitions and 200 events. It's safe to say that everyone should find something to their liking. 

Here are a few events especially for those interested in architecture, landscape and our environment.

Erik Bryggman was one of the most influential architects of his generation and with his design, together with Alvar Aalto, marked the beginning of Functionalism in Finland. He designed a large number of buildings that are considered a cornerstone in the architectural history of the 20th century and have certainly stood the test of time. The Bryggman Institute in Estonia has put together an exhibition at the Nordic House about Bryggman’s career and its impact on the Nordic architectural history.

Experience Reykjavík in a new way with a slightly faster heartbeat than usual. The Architect Association of Iceland will guide you through the diverse and complex environment of the city on a run, so lace up your running shoes and join in. There will be a total of four runs where participants will be guided through the diverse and complex environment of the city of Reykjavík. Do not worry if you’re not in the best shape of your life. There will be runs for beginners as well as experienced runners. Everyone should be able to experience the city in a new way, with a slightly faster heartbeat than usual.

The book ‘Laugavegur’ was published in 2021 by Angústúra publishers. It tells the building and commerce history of the main shopping street in Reykjavík in both images and text. The book includes information on over 100 houses as well as the development of the urban space, the past and present houses and the ones that were designed but never built.
The book is a collaboration between Historian Anna Dröfn Ágústsdóttir and Architect Guðni Valberg. During DesignMarch the authors of the book will exhibit material at Epal that Guðni made specially for the book but wasn’t included in the final published version.

Home / Biome is the Spring Term exhibition with design projects exploring alternative ways of inhabiting real, virtual and hybrid environments. The first years exhibit a collective research on sensing environments and living in a data driven world. The second year graduates exhibit their individual projects dealing with food waste, food growing systems, and the future of rural communities.The students will be present at the exhibition and host a series of workshops with the public on processes of ‘inhabiting’ the space. The exhibition is held in Reykjavík City Hall.

Blue Lagoon has been at the forefront of Icelandic design for three decades, translating the shapes, colors, and textures of its volcanic surroundings into the principles guiding its unique esthetic.

The Retreat at Blue Lagoon, which opened in 2018 and received countless awards and honors, represents the pinnacle of Blue Lagoon’s approach to design, embodying the harmonic interplay of interior and exterior through the inspired orchestration of furnishings, art, and materials.

With this exhibition, we pull back the curtain on several key dimensions of the Retreat’s interior landscape, revealing the untold stories of these defining components. The exhibition is held at Hafnartorg.

ARKITÝPA designs sculptural furniture with emphasis on upcycled materials from the building industry, in playful experiments in form, function and material. The exhibition, “ARKITÝPA – form / flow / function / PRODUCT” held at Epal, will showcase a product, the final design of two tables made from upcycled stone material.

The project SUBSURFACE – CONVECTION brings together two projects related to the ecosystem of lava on both micro and macro scale. s. ap. architects introduce their project Lavaforming: the architecture of a technologically advanced society that has abandoned profit maximization and is therefore free to explore solutions to the building material crisis of the world. The project explores the possibility of using lava as a building material. Grugg og Makk’s project deals with microorganisms that are mostly hidden from our view, that have been harvested and fermented into beer. At the exhibition, guests can experience the project through virtual reality while drinking wild beer at the bar UNDIRLAND.

The Elliðaár Power Station was commissioned in 1921, illuminating our path towards the future. Electricity and the utilities that followed not only revolutionised everyday living conditions in Reykjavík but ushered in an era of knowledge and innovation. With the opening of Elliðaárstöð in autumn 2022, the site will become an indoor and outdoor destination where the language of design relates both the industrial and societal history of the place, along with its scientific underpinnings.

For DesignMarch, design team Terta will give a guided tour of the area, which is still under construction, on Saturday and Sunday, discussing the team’s design approach. Elliðaárstöð will also be hosting other interesting events where visitors can experience the area’s rich natural resources, its nature and history.

In collaboration with the Icelandic architecture association Arkitektafélag Íslands, the Nordic house is hosting a seminar in two parts titled Female Pioneers and Historic Buildings on Thursday 5th May from 10AM to 2PM. Both parts are related to the history of the Nordic House.

The first part of the seminar, Female Pioneers is dedicated to some of the remarkable women who have made a powerful imprint in the architectural history. In the second part, Historic Buildings we will hear from the architekt duo Kurt og Pí and their renovation projects in Iceland as well as their input to the renovation of the Nordic House in Reykjavík.